Damning report by watchdog on Leeds care home for women with mental health issues

A Leeds care home for women with mental health issues has received a damning report from a watchdog - and been ordered to shape up or face legal action.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has formally warned Waterloo Manor Independent Hospital in Garforth that it must make urgent improvements, and given it an “inadequate” rating overall.

The warning follows a visit by inspectors to the hospital in February.

Inspectors were told there were 56 “serious untoward” incidents at the hospital in the 12 months to January this year. Eight related to incidents of self harm and 24 to patient on patient abuse.

The hospital, which provides rehabilitation services for women with mental health needs, was inspected over a period of four days by a team which included CQC inspectors, a Mental Health Act specialist and a consultant psychiatrist.

The team uncovered a string of issues including dirty wards with poor layouts which meant patients could access areas where staff could not observe them.

On some wards inspectors found potential risks from fixtures that could be used by patients to harm themselves. Although staff were aware of these risks, management did not have clear plans in place in order to address the issue.

Following the inspection, CQC issued four warning notices requiring Waterloo Manor Limited to take action to protect the health, safety and welfare of its patients.

Jenny Wilkes, Head of Hospital Inspection (Mental Health), said: “Following the inspection we told Waterloo Manor Limited that they must take action to protect the health, safety and welfare of the people in their care.

“Some patients told inspectors that they were not well cared for and that they had experienced bullying by staff and other patients.

“The safety issues we found required urgent attention.

“High staff vacancies, inadequate care planning and the failure to address safety risks posed by ligature points and broken furniture were all areas in need of attention.

“The number of incidents of patient on patient abuse was disturbing - yet we found little evidence that the provider had a system in place to learn from these incidents or prevent them happening in the first place.

“All patients are entitled to services which are safe, effective, caring, well led, and responsive to their needs.

“It is a matter of concern that this hospital did not have systems in place to monitor the quality of the service.

“We expect the provider to have made the necessary improvements.

“We will return imminently to check that it has made all the changes we require to ensure people are safe and well cared for.

“Otherwise we will consider using our legal powers further to protect the people who depend on this service.”

A spokesperson for InMind, the mental health care provider which runs the home, said: “Following the feedback we have received from the CQC, we immediately put in place a robust action plan and we have made quick and significant progress in addressing all the issues that were highlighted following the inspection in February this year.

“We expect the improvements we have made, which include the appointment of a new management team, will satisfy the CQC when they return for a follow-up inspection shortly.

“The safety and well-being of those who use our services is of paramount importance and we will continue to work with the CQC, NHS England and Leeds CCG to ensure we deliver the highest standards of care and the best outcomes for patients.

“We will use all the resources at our disposal to ensure the hospital emerges from this process with a clear aspiration of achieving an outstanding rating from CQC in the future.”